With the dark nights creeping in and the season beginning to change, it can only mean one thing….Halloween is almost upon us! The 3000 year old festival was first celebrated by the Celts in Ireland and Britain in a festival known as ‘Samhain’ which metamorphosed in North America into ‘All Hallows Eve’ and later ‘Halloween’.

So if you’re looking for a freakish event to attend over Halloween to celebrate with friends, bring the kids or simply as an excuse to show off your spooky costume and ward off a few spirits, fear not. We at The Sharpe have 9 spooktacular Irish Halloween happenings for you to check out!

Skalloween

What better way to count down to Halloween than by combining the celebrations with some Ska tunes! Ska is a music genre that originated in Jamaica and has since flourished in Ireland and across Europe. There will be popular Ska artists performing on the night including The Skatuesques, the Skalps and Ska Patrol for curious music lovers to check out along with a couple of DJ’s in store to get the party started. The bonus is that there is a fancy dress option and there will be prizes too. Sure why not for the craic!

The Bram Stoker Festival

This eerie festival aims at paying tribute to Ireland’s own legendary horror writer, Bram Stoker, creator of the legendary Dracula. Over four days on the run up to Halloween, the festival boasts freakish activities for all the family to attend in the afternoons and evenings. Expect audio tours down Victorian Dublin, literary discussions for adults, a ghoulish theatre show for children at Stokerland and an outdoor disco in The Ark in Temple Bar for the whole family.

Spirits of Meath Festival

For those wishing to travel back in time to where the legends all began in Ireland’s Ancient East, then this festival is right up your street. The festival of Samhain originated in Co. Meath 3000 years ago and now the whole family can enjoy a combination of historical and fiction–based activities in the Boyne Valley to celebrate. There are a whole host of spooky activities to choose from for children and adults alike, including an ominous sounding tour of graveyards, friendly witches and the experience of a haunted house scare or two to name a few!

Day Of The Dead Festival

This year, Wicklow is set to host the festival of El Día De Los Muertos or ‘The Day of the Dead’. It aims at bringing a little Mexican culture to Ireland and demonstrating the world famous and historical Mexican tradition and celebration. The festival hopes to encourage people to experience the fruits of Mexico including their cuisine, art, music and fancy dress all under the one roof. There will also be various Irish and international artists performing at the event such as Dax J, Zombie Nation and Eve who will be playing some lively tunes to go along with the theme.

Therefore if sampling Mexico on Halloween is what you seek, head to the festival website at – http://dayofthedead.ie/

Where: Glendalough House Raheen, Annamoe, Co. Wicklow

When: Sunday, October 29

Cost: From €27.53 – €71.57

Age: Over 18

Farmaphobia

Another of this years unmissable Irish Halloween happenings will take place at Causey Farm’s creative and unsettling Farmaphobia event. Here, you will be assigned a guide and are taken through a variety of spooky rooms and buildings in a haunted-house type experience. This year’s rooms include the ominous escape rooms, house of dolls, the vamporium, dead and breakfast, the field of screams (where a certain children of corn are said to linger) and the mutation morgue to name but a few. For young children, there will be a separate event taking place on the farm called Pooka Spooka which is more age appropriate.

Age: Over 16’s (Children aged 13 and older must be accompanied by an adult)

The Nightmare Realm

Described as an “extreme walk-through” horror event, The Nightmare Realm is guaranteed to prey on your fears and bring back some iconic bogeymen from classic horror films that haunted many a child’s dreams. It is not designed for the faint-hearted. If you can imagine the thrill of being left in the dark with your companions whilst being chased down pitch black corridors with perhaps a flickering torch and Freddie Krugar on your back, then you will have a notion of the events said to be in store!

Macnas Parade

Macnas is an internationally successful interactive performing arts group which was developed in Galway in 1986. Having toured with the great U2 and performed at the MTV music awards, Macnas are now back home to launch their fantastic annual Halloween parade in Galway and in Dublin for the first time this year. Think St Patrick’s Day parade but Halloween-style.

A post shared by DoDublin (@dodublintours) on Aug 25, 2017 at 9:01am PDT

If there was a competition for Irish Halloween tours, this would be a formidable competitor in the running. The Ghost Bus Tour is one of the only tours in Ireland that reveals the dark, secret history of Dublin City as we have never seen it. The tour stops off at various historical points around Dublin and allows passengers to go in and experience these sites for themselves. There will be some actors and creepy props thrown in along the way for fun but the tour aims to be educational as well as terrifying!

If you want to visit the depths of Dublin and its secrets, check out their website at – www.ghostbus.ie

Where: O’Connell Street, Dublin

When: Monday-Thursday 8pm, Friday-Saturday 8pm and 9pm

Cost: €28

Age: Over 14’s

Loftus Hall Tour

Loftus Hall which is said to be one of Ireland’s most haunted buildings is opening its doors for Halloween tours of the building with a few special effects thrown in along the way. The building has a dark history surrounding it, involving a battle and some creepy legends featuring sinister spirits which has been the source of speculation and televised documenting for years. Some elements of the tour will be in darkness for those of a sensitive disposition. There are a variety of different tours to choose from to suit various age groups attending, so keep this in mind. There are also overnight stay group lockdowns as an option.

Age: Over 5 years (this is dependent on the type of tour and up to the discretion of individual parents)

As Halloween is fast approaching, there are certainly a number of spooky Irish Halloween Happenings lined up to celebrate. With something for everyone, all you need to do is find that perfect costume and have a blast! If your thinking about picking up an outfit but are struggling for inspiration, avoid the last minute running around and find the perfect Halloween costume right here!

Interested in big events and likes to keep up to date with celebrity culture as a personal interest. An avid reader and movie lover, enjoys in depth discussions about anything related to dystopian fiction!

Since its launch in 2010, Instagram has become the most sought after mobile app, reaching 500... more»

9 Freakishly Fun Irish Halloween Happenings

October 22, 2017 (No Comments) by Alannah Kenny

With the dark nights creeping in and the season beginning to change, it can only mean one thing….Halloween is almost upon us! The 3000 year old festival was first celebrated by the Celts in Ireland and Britain in a festival known as ‘Samhain’ which metamorphosed in North America into ‘All Hallows Eve’ and later ‘Halloween’.

So if you’re looking for a freakish event to attend over Halloween to celebrate with friends, bring the kids or simply as an excuse to show off your spooky costume and ward off a few spirits, fear not. We at The Sharpe have 9 spooktacular Irish Halloween happenings for you to check out!

Skalloween

What better way to count down to Halloween than by combining the celebrations with some Ska tunes! Ska is a music genre that originated in Jamaica and has since flourished in Ireland and across Europe. There will be popular Ska artists performing on the night including The Skatuesques, the Skalps and Ska Patrol for curious music lovers to check out along with a couple of DJ’s in store to get the party started. The bonus is that there is a fancy dress option and there will be prizes too. Sure why not for the craic!

The Bram Stoker Festival

This eerie festival aims at paying tribute to Ireland’s own legendary horror writer, Bram Stoker, creator of the legendary Dracula. Over four days on the run up to Halloween, the festival boasts freakish activities for all the family to attend in the afternoons and evenings. Expect audio tours down Victorian Dublin, literary discussions for adults, a ghoulish theatre show for children at Stokerland and an outdoor disco in The Ark in Temple Bar for the whole family.

Spirits of Meath Festival

For those wishing to travel back in time to where the legends all began in Ireland’s Ancient East, then this festival is right up your street. The festival of Samhain originated in Co. Meath 3000 years ago and now the whole family can enjoy a combination of historical and fiction–based activities in the Boyne Valley to celebrate. There are a whole host of spooky activities to choose from for children and adults alike, including an ominous sounding tour of graveyards, friendly witches and the experience of a haunted house scare or two to name a few!

Day Of The Dead Festival

This year, Wicklow is set to host the festival of El Día De Los Muertos or ‘The Day of the Dead’. It aims at bringing a little Mexican culture to Ireland and demonstrating the world famous and historical Mexican tradition and celebration. The festival hopes to encourage people to experience the fruits of Mexico including their cuisine, art, music and fancy dress all under the one roof. There will also be various Irish and international artists performing at the event such as Dax J, Zombie Nation and Eve who will be playing some lively tunes to go along with the theme.

Therefore if sampling Mexico on Halloween is what you seek, head to the festival website at – http://dayofthedead.ie/

Where: Glendalough House Raheen, Annamoe, Co. Wicklow

When: Sunday, October 29

Cost: From €27.53 – €71.57

Age: Over 18

Farmaphobia

Another of this years unmissable Irish Halloween happenings will take place at Causey Farm’s creative and unsettling Farmaphobia event. Here, you will be assigned a guide and are taken through a variety of spooky rooms and buildings in a haunted-house type experience. This year’s rooms include the ominous escape rooms, house of dolls, the vamporium, dead and breakfast, the field of screams (where a certain children of corn are said to linger) and the mutation morgue to name but a few. For young children, there will be a separate event taking place on the farm called Pooka Spooka which is more age appropriate.

Age: Over 16’s (Children aged 13 and older must be accompanied by an adult)

The Nightmare Realm

Described as an “extreme walk-through” horror event, The Nightmare Realm is guaranteed to prey on your fears and bring back some iconic bogeymen from classic horror films that haunted many a child’s dreams. It is not designed for the faint-hearted. If you can imagine the thrill of being left in the dark with your companions whilst being chased down pitch black corridors with perhaps a flickering torch and Freddie Krugar on your back, then you will have a notion of the events said to be in store!

Macnas Parade

Macnas is an internationally successful interactive performing arts group which was developed in Galway in 1986. Having toured with the great U2 and performed at the MTV music awards, Macnas are now back home to launch their fantastic annual Halloween parade in Galway and in Dublin for the first time this year. Think St Patrick’s Day parade but Halloween-style.

A post shared by DoDublin (@dodublintours) on Aug 25, 2017 at 9:01am PDT

If there was a competition for Irish Halloween tours, this would be a formidable competitor in the running. The Ghost Bus Tour is one of the only tours in Ireland that reveals the dark, secret history of Dublin City as we have never seen it. The tour stops off at various historical points around Dublin and allows passengers to go in and experience these sites for themselves. There will be some actors and creepy props thrown in along the way for fun but the tour aims to be educational as well as terrifying!

If you want to visit the depths of Dublin and its secrets, check out their website at – www.ghostbus.ie

Where: O’Connell Street, Dublin

When: Monday-Thursday 8pm, Friday-Saturday 8pm and 9pm

Cost: €28

Age: Over 14’s

Loftus Hall Tour

Loftus Hall which is said to be one of Ireland’s most haunted buildings is opening its doors for Halloween tours of the building with a few special effects thrown in along the way. The building has a dark history surrounding it, involving a battle and some creepy legends featuring sinister spirits which has been the source of speculation and televised documenting for years. Some elements of the tour will be in darkness for those of a sensitive disposition. There are a variety of different tours to choose from to suit various age groups attending, so keep this in mind. There are also overnight stay group lockdowns as an option.

Age: Over 5 years (this is dependent on the type of tour and up to the discretion of individual parents)

As Halloween is fast approaching, there are certainly a number of spooky Irish Halloween Happenings lined up to celebrate. With something for everyone, all you need to do is find that perfect costume and have a blast! If your thinking about picking up an outfit but are struggling for inspiration, avoid the last minute running around and find the perfect Halloween costume right here!

Interested in big events and likes to keep up to date with celebrity culture as a personal interest. An avid reader and movie lover, enjoys in depth discussions about anything related to dystopian fiction!